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The Biology of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

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Childhood Leukemia

Part of the book series: Pediatric Oncology ((PEDIATRICO))

Abstract

Discoveries of the underlying biological pathways that drive leukemogenesis in children have taken place at an astonishing pace. These findings have resulted in large part because of the evolution of technical developments in analyzing chromosome structure, the development of monoclonal antibodies capable of recognizing discrete cell surface proteins that correlate with cell lineage and differentiation state, recombinant DNA technology, and engineered mouse models (e.g., transgenic and “knock out” models). More recently, advances in high-throughput genomics and progress in stem cell biology have transformed the field of cancer biology in general and perhaps more so in hematological malignancies. A cohesive view of the stepwise process of transformation and the cellular heterogeneity of the leukemic clone is emerging and, importantly, leukemia-specific targets have been identified and novel therapeutic approaches have been directed at these lesions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. NYU Medical Center Smilow Research Building, 522 1st Avenue, SML 1201, New York, NY, 10016, USA

    William L. Carroll

  2. Clinical Pediatrics, Hematology-Oncology, University of California, San Francisco, USA

    Mignon Loh

  3. Universita Milano, Ospedale San Geraldo, Monza, Italy

    Andrea Biondi

  4. UMN Cancer Research Facility, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, MSC 08-4630, New Mexico, USA

    Cheryl Willman

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  1. William L. Carroll
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  2. Mignon Loh
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  3. Andrea Biondi
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  4. Cheryl Willman
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Correspondence to William L. Carroll .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine & Health Sciences, George Washington University, EW. Highway 4600, Bethesda, 20814, Maryland, USA

    Gregory H. Reaman

  2. Cincinnati Children's Hospital, Medical Center (CCHMC), University of Cincinnati, Burnett Avenue 3333, Cincinnati, 45229, Ohio, USA

    Franklin O. Smith

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Carroll, W.L., Loh, M., Biondi, A., Willman, C. (2011). The Biology of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. In: Reaman, G., Smith, F. (eds) Childhood Leukemia. Pediatric Oncology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-13781-5_2

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